SEArkCDA
Summer Meeting

The summer meeting of the SEArkCDA was held at 4:00 PM, July 28, 2009, at the Austin Hotel in Hot Springs. The meeting was called to order by chair Charlotte Wilson. The following choral directors were in attendance: Karen Robinson, Barbara Jones, Tammy Albrecht, Denise Gray, Lisa Knoedl, Sheree Clark, Charlotte Lee, Michael Binns, Bennie Vincent, Cara Akin, Laura Ferguson, Edmond Hampton, LoraNelle Humphrey, Kathy Felts, Wilma Trout, Dennis Gates, Annette Rushing, Shannon Nash, Susan Buckner.
The minutes of the Spring meeting were read. The treasurer reported a balanceof $2773.72 as of May, 2009.
OLD BUSINESS: All-Region Clinics---Terry Hicks will bring his own accompanist, so we will not need to hire Donna Couch.
CPA---Charlotte has already asked Tina Neiderbrach and Craig Jones to judge. Susan has asked Dana Emberson from Ahlf Jr. High in Searcy. We will only need one more judge for the two day event.
ShereeClark told us that one of the band regions has their contest the same days of our CPAs. We all need to check with our band directors to see when they are going. We may need to mix up both Jr. and Sr. High Choirs on both days to work around the band performances.
The Fall meeting will be held August 24th at Cara Akin’s home in Monticello. The Spring meeting will be held at Karen Robinson’s house in Pine Bluff.
For next year: We need more chairs for the summer meeting so people do not have to sit on the floor.
TOM STREET visited our region to speak on several matters: 1) Eligibility---all 7th graders are eligible. 1st semester, all 8th graders are eligible. Fall semester we only need to turn in the names of the students auditioning for All-Region Choir. Spring semester we must turn in the names of every student that will sing at CPA. You can send the eligibility by snail mail, or scan the signed certificate then email it with the student lists.
2) To be brought up at the General Meeting---State Clinicians for this year and for 2011.
3) Questions brought to the board---if at a large school a choral program has two directors, can both directors beactive in the sight-reading room at CPA? Board response: Only one can direct. The other must be silent.
---Does the sight-reading music at CPA need text? They are going to try it this year with no text.
---The State Board wants to start on a handbook for all of our event managers, secretaries, treasurers, etc. witha time line of when to do what duties. Due by May 2010. (needs to be no more than two pages long)
4) All choir dates are approved by the AAA
5) The home school issue is still alive and well---home schools can demand to participate in local school activities but they have to pay their own fees. (TS NOTE: Home school students are not allowed to participate in any ArkCDA event. Only individuals who are classified as bona fide students at AAA/ArkCDA member schools may participate.)
6) Tom wants a logo for ArkCDA. Can we get some talented kids to submit designs?
7) The board wants every school to allow time for groups to listen critically to other groups performing at region and state CPA. Tim will send a letter to administrators stressing the educational benefits of a slightly longer time at CPA.
8) Mentoring committee will appoint a Mentor coordinator.
9) The required music list for CPA: The board wants to start over from scratch and have levels 1-5 like the UIL list, rather than just 1-3. Sheree asked why we could not keep the current list until the new list is made?
10) Certified judges: the criteria was loosened to maybe making I’s at CPA 3 out of 4 years. The board encourages everyone to go through the judge certification training. Matt Wittworth and Mark Langley are developing a form on the computer for judge recommendations (some of the recommendations that were emailed to Tom could not be opened, etc.).
Things to do: We must send Tom our list of judges and clinicians for the 2009-2010 year.
At 6:00 PM the motion was made to adjourn by Denise Gray and seconded by Cara Akin. The meeting was ended in due form.

Susan Buckner,
SE Region Secretary